Shannon Bennett – Page 8 – International Institute of Genealogical Studies

The History Behind Migration

By Shannon Combs-Bennett, Student The first module of US: Migration Patterns was packed full of useful information. Facts and tid-bits that I had not heard before, or at least not stopped to consider when looking at the bigger picture of US migration patterns. I actually read this module several times through. Each time I did I made a note in the margins about statements that related to my personal research, and I am sure you will too. Of particular interest was the long list of records presented that might be left behind as our ancestors moved westward. Some I am sure you can guess. Of course there could be bible records, censuses, personal manuscripts, or vital records. Some of the more unusual ones (that I will be checking on) were emigrant aid companies, fort records, occupation records, voting registers, plus many others. Once again reminding me that our ancestors did not live in a vacuum. They were people who lived full lives and left a paper trail if you know where, or how, to look. If you have read any of my blog posts in the past you may remember me harping on how important it is to know all types of history and geography. Which is why I was literally yelling “YES” as I read Module 1 and came to the section on history and geography. Our instructor, Beverly Whitaker, does an excellent job driving home the point that you need to understand the history of the US, from…

My Next Course: US Migration Patterns

By Shannon Combs-Bennett, Student Through my research I have learned that my ancestors never stayed in one place too long. Some of you may be among the small few that had ancestors arrive on these shores and stay put, but for the majority of people, that didn’t happen. There was always new places, new adventures, new land, and new opportunity just waiting over the horizon. Understanding why people moved once they arrived in America can be critical to unlocking a few of those pesky brick walls. I have studied a lot about why people immigrated to the US but not as much time on why they then kept moving west. For those of you who have read my blog posts before you know that my family is mainly from the state of Indiana. They came there from Europe and from eastern United States. While my direct line stayed in Indiana (for over 100 years until my parents left) many of their extended family kept moving west. Some landed along the Mississippi. Others made it all the way to California. In this course I hope to learn more about why they moved, how they got there, and any other motivations that may have gone into that decision. By looking at the introduction for the course US: Migration Patterns I see that we will cover everything from Colonial American migration through the 20th century. Then there are the mention of maps. I love maps! They really drive home what was physically done…

Methodology 5

By Shannon Combs Bennett, Student Proof, sources, information and evidence are crucial to genealogical work. Being able to prove a connection can be hindered by the validity of your source, the reliability of the information and the evidence at hand. Understanding how these elements work together is a skill that all genealogists must possess to be effective researchers and successful. Through the six modules of Methodology 5 you are taught these skills. I don’t know about you, but I love case studies and other examples to demonstrate the lesson you are learning. Which is why I was very happy to see that there were many different types of examples to walk you through the process for solving advanced research problems. These examples highlighted the skill we were just learning about to show the student how to put to use the information they just learned. The entirety of Module 5 is using the skills you learned in the course to work through various problems. I enjoyed reading through these case studies, several of which are similar to problems I have faced in my own research, and was able to learn new ways to approach problems and a different perspective to follow the leads in the future. The way the instructor presents the problems, walks you through the solutions and then shows you the proof is very informative and I feel that many people will get a lot of great information out of this section. One thing that I did not find…

Stepping Through Methodology 4

By Shannon Combs Bennett, Student I know this is a blog post about the Methodology 4 course, but I am going to suggest that if you have not gone back and read my post about Methodology 3 you should do that first. Why you ask? Well, like I stated in the previous post these two courses are linked together. Almost like a part 1 and part 2 and this is a post about part 2. Methodology 4 continues with the last three steps in the six steps to success. These three steps focus more on recording, documenting and preserving your research than other more fundamental skills. Don’t get me wrong. These, in my opinion, are some of the most important skills you should have. Unfortunately they are skills many genealogists feel are not as important as the research find itself. I would like to say they are wrong, and here is why. While we all love making the big finds and love adding pieces of ephemera or information to our family trees, knowing what to do with it after you find it is crucial. Without the analysis, documentation and proper storage all we have is a cool item and not something that we can really share with others. Sure, we could show the document around but having an analysis and documentation to go with it makes it much more valuable. This course starts with proper recording of information. Sometimes it amazes me that people (even those who have researched for…

The Steps of Methodology 3

By Shannon Combs Bennett, Student Well, I have entered the realm of the Intermediate coursework. I decided that I am going to first take Methodology 3, 4 and 5 back-to-back to lay the ground work for the other courses that are coming in this section. Following those three, I will work on the rest of the required courses for the American Records Certificate and then a few electives. So, hang on to see what I am up to over the next few months. Methodology 3 is broken into six steps the instructor thinks you need to know to be successful. The first three steps are covered in Methodology 3 with the last three covered in Methodology 4. Which made me thankful that I was taking these two courses back-to-back since they really read as a part 1 and part 2 of the same course. These steps are: Defining your goals Learning the basics Deciding on strategies for research Effective searching and recording Documentation Presenting and preserving your research For this post I will focus on my takeaways from the first steps listed. The next post will cover Methodology 4 and the last three steps. To be honest, Methodology 3 focuses primarily on setting up your office space and further honing your research skills. Now “office space” may be too formal of a term. I started out at my kitchen table with boxes that I shifted around when we actually had to use it. Just recently I have moved into the…

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